Justice: Lidge gets storybook ending

Commentary: Lidge gets storybook ending

RICHARD JUSTICE, Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle |
October 30, 2008

Philadelphia closer Brad Lidge, left, was on top of the world after striking out Tampa Bay's Eric Hinske to seal the Phillies 4-3 win in Game 5 of the World Series. The Phillies won the Series, 4-1.

PHILADELPHIA — It ended the way Brad Lidge always hoped it would end: with a joyous leap and a moment of redemption. How sweet. How deserving.

It ended the way his former teammates with the Astros dreamed, too. Here’s hoping he understands that. They loved him, not just because he was a good teammate, but because he is a good person, a special person. He handled so much pain and disappointment with unimaginable class and dignity. Along the way, he grew in stature. Did he ever. He handled tough times the way we’d all like to handle them. The amazing thing is that he always believed in himself. Even when others didn’t, even when the failures seemed so smothering, Lidge never stopped believing there would be a perfect moment like this one. “I wouldn’t change anything in my career,” he said. “It got me all right here, right now. This is the best it’ll ever be.” Being traded to the Phillies gave him a fresh start last winter, a chance to start over and erase all those ghosts. And there he was Wednesday night, finishing a perfect season, a remarkable season, leaping into the air in front of the mound, landing on his knees, screaming with delight as his teammates mobbed him. He struck out Eric Hinske with the tying run on second base, throwing an unhittable slider — remember that pitch, Astros fans? — by him. He rose from the pile of bodies, still smiling, emotions bubbling to the surface as the Philadelphia Phillies celebrated a clinching Game 5 of the 2008 World Series, a 4-3 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays. Indeed it was. He was handed 48 save chances this season. He made good on all of them. Think of that. Roll it around in your mind. Ask yourself if you thought he was capable of this. The Phillies turned to him 48 times, and he delivered 48 times. He’s a huge reason the Phillies won their second championship in 126 seasons. Valuable, indeed He’s in the mix for the National League’s Most Valuable Player Award, too. Finally, on a cold night at the end of this oddest of World Series, he clinched the championship that eluded him with the Astros. This one made a lot of that other stuff a footnote. “I couldn’t be happier right now,” he said. “It’s so redeeming, but it was never about that. It was about winning for these guys and this city. I don’t care about that other (stuff).” All you need to know is some of the people that know him best had trouble watching him pitch because they couldn’t stand the thought of something bad happening to him. That’s how much they still rooted for him. He’s as decent and honest and likeable as anyone you’ll ever meet. He’d overcome so much just to get to the major leagues. That’s the part of his story that gets overlooked. If he took the hard times in stride, it may be because the really hard times came while he toiled in the minor leagues. The Astros drafted him in the first round of the 1998 draft out of Notre Dame. He missed almost all of his first three professional seasons with arm and knee problems. He’d get hurt, work to get back on the mound, then get hurt again. After the 2001 season, he returned home to Colorado and prepared to return to school and get his degree. That’s when Tim Purpura, then the Astros farm director, talked him out of quitting. He showed him Robby Nen’s career stats from the San Francisco Giants’ media guide. He showed him that Nen had dealt with some of the same injury issues. Lidge agreed to try again. This time, he stayed healthy for an entire season. He was in the big leagues a year later because Gerry Hunsicker decided it was time to find out. He was 26 and running out of chances. He didn’t just become a good reliever. He became a great one. Right until the moment that the Albert Pujols home run left the yard in the 2005 playoffs, he appeared to be on the fast track to the Hall of Fame. Life goes on Two tortuous years followed. He had meltdowns on the mound, lost his closer’s role a couple of times. He endured anyway, kept trying, never gave up. “That’s behind him,” teammate Jamie Moyer said. What we’ll never know is if he could have had this success had he stayed with the Astros. Lidge maintains that he would have. That’s a question that can never be answered. Ed Wade decided Lidge needed a fresh start elsewhere. He gave him a chance with a roster that had been expertly constructed, with a manager, Charlie Manuel, who is brilliant at instilling confidence in his players. Lidge regained command of his fastball, regained some of the cockiness that allowed him to challenge hitters and had one of those seasons that most players only dream of. They laughed and cried Wednesday night in Philadelphia. They spoke of some indefinable magic that championship teams almost always had. Lidge understood all of this. He may have understood better than anyone. Now he’s a champion. In every way. richard.justice@chron.com